The Spurs can confidently say that they are no longer a top-heavy team. During the superstar-less years, Coach Popovich would always say that their pass-heavy philosophy wasn't just about some love of pure basketball. It was born out of necessity, as they didn't have a reliable player that they could turn to for a good shot. They have that now in Victor Wembanyama, [but since he's out](https://airalamo.com/nba-execs-ridiculous-wembanyama-criticism-completely-misses-multiple-marks), they've had to turn back the clock.
The Spurs are relying on each other more than before
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Don't get me wrong, De'Aaron Fox is a blur, and he's a guy you can rely on to generate good offense, but as a point guard, he needs others to come along for the ride to maximize his impact. That's exactly what's happening now. During the first 12 games of the season, the Spurs were 18th in assists, only tallying 26.3 on average.
That's very different from what fans are used to seeing from their unselfish ballclub. Their culture of good to great didn't change; it just evolved. Wemby is so versatile; giving him the ball will usually result in a great shot without as many passes. In the two games they've played without him, they've racked up 30.5 assists a night. It's a small sample size, but it's not a coincidence.
The changes don't stop there. As dominant as the Alien has been, he hasn't shot the long ball very well, so their efficiency has risen. San Antonio was 16th in the league, shooting 35.8% over the first 12 games. They've shot 37.5% in these last two contests.
Their turnovers have also plummeted. The guys went from 16.9 a night (25) to 12 (4th), while picking up their pace a touch. That's a huge reason that they were able to beat Memphis despite getting absolutely destroyed on the offensive glass. The Spurs gave up 21 rebounds, and that's a recipe for a butt whooping nine times out of ten.
The results of their adjustments have been a sustained offense, operating with the 4th-highest rating in the league. Mitch Johnson deserves a load of credit for managing the team so well in the absence of his best player. They've been dealing with guys coming in and out of the lineup all year, and it's made it complicated to nail down proper rotations.
The critics have been doubting the roster since before the season started. Part of the resistance to the widespread acceptance of the Spurs as a contender is because people doubted how good the team could be if Wemby was forced to miss games. Well, [early returns look pretty damn good](https://airalamo.com/harrison-barnes-4th-quarter-scorcher-underscores-tremendous-spurs-triumph). At this rate, we'll be issuing apology forms for them to sign very soon.